Kent Conrad

Kent Conrad
United States Senator from North Dakota
Incumbent
Assumed office  January 3, 1987 Serving with Byron Dorgan In the Class I seat since December 15, 1992
Preceded by	Jocelyn Burdick
In office In the Class III seat January 3, 1987 – December 15, 1992
Preceded by	Mark Andrews
Succeeded by	Byron Dorgan
Chairman of the Senate Committee on the Budget
Incumbent
Assumed office  January 4, 2007
Preceded by	Judd Gregg
In office June 6, 2001 – January 3, 2003
Preceded by	Pete Domenici
Succeeded by	Don Nickles
In office January 3 – January 20, 2001
Preceded by	Pete Domenici
Succeeded by	Pete Domenici
Tax Commissioners of North Dakota
In office 1981–1987
Governor	Allen I. Olson George Sinner
Preceded by	Byron Dorgan
Succeeded by	Heidi Heitkamp
Born	March 12, 1948 (1948-03-12) (age 62) Bismarck, North Dakota
Political party	Democratic-NPL
Spouse(s)	Pam Schafer (divorced), Lucy Calautti
Children	Jessamyn Conrad
Residence	Bismarck, North Dakota
Alma mater	Stanford University The George Washington University
Occupation	Civil servant
Religion	Unitarian Universalist[1]

Kent Conrad (born Gaylord Kent Conrad on March 12, 1948) is the senior United States Senator from North Dakota. He is a member of the North Dakota Democratic-NPL Party, the North Dakota affiliate of the Democratic Party. First elected to the Senate in 1986, he is currently chairman of the Senate Budget Committee.

Early life

Conrad was born in Bismarck, North Dakota and lived much of his early life in Bismarck. Orphaned at a young age, he was raised by his grandparents. He attended Roosevelt Elementary and Hughes Junior High, and several years of high school in Tripoli, Libya. He graduated in 1966 from Phillips Exeter Academy like his counterpart on the Senate Budget Committee, Republican Senator Judd Gregg. He went to college at Stanford and received an MBA from The George Washington University.

Conrad has been married twice. His first wife, Pam, is the sister of former U.S. Secretary of Agriculture and former North Dakota Governor Ed Schafer.^[2][3] They had one daughter, Jessamyn. Following their divorce, Conrad married Lucy Calautti, a lobbyist for Major League Baseball.

Early political career

After graduating from college, he became a civil servant, working as an assistant to the North Dakota tax commissioner, Byron Dorgan, who later became his colleague in the Senate. Conrad made his first entry into politics when he ran unsuccessfully for the North Dakota Auditor's office in 1976. In 1980, Conrad succeeded Dorgan as tax commissioner. Conrad was state tax commissioner until 1986, when he ran for the Senate.

U.S. Senate career

Committees

• Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry
  • Subcommittee on Energy, Science and Technology
  • Subcommittee on Domestic and Foreign Marketing, Inspection, and Plant and Animal Health
  • Subcommittee on Production, Income Protection and Price Support
• Committee on the Budget (Chairman)
• Committee on Finance
  • Subcommittee on Energy, Natural Resources, and Infrastructure
  • Subcommittee on Social Security, Pensions, and Family Policy
  • Subcommittee on Taxation, IRS Oversight, and Long-Term Growth (Chairman)
• Committee on Indian Affairs
• Joint Committee on Taxation

Political positions

In April 2006, he was selected by Time as one of "America's 10 Best Senators". That same year, he was commended by The American for his knowledge of economic issues. Conrad endorsed Senator Barack Obama for the 2008 Democratic Presidential Race. Conrad is also a leading member of the "Gang of 10", a conservative group which pushed for much greater offshore drilling in sensitive environmental areas. North Dakota is geographically the most inland state of the continental United States.

Health care

In the 2009 negotiations over reforming America's healthcare system, Conrad strongly opposed any "public option". The AFL-CIO announced they will fund a primary challenge against Conrad in 2012 if he continues to oppose a "public option".

On September 29, 2009, Senator Conrad voted with Senate Finance Committee Republicans against an amendment to a health care bill that would have provided for a public insurance option. He was supportive of the Stupak-Pitts Amendment, which places limits on taxpayer-funded abortions in the context of the November 2009 Affordable Health Care for America Act.^[4]

Social policies

Conrad is more politically conservative than most Democrats on the issues of abortion and gun control/gun politics. He is one of the few members of the Democratic Party to have voted consistently in favor of banning the so-called "partial-birth" abortion medical procedure. He also opposes public funding of abortion. However, Conrad voted in favor of lifting the ban on military base abortions.^[5] Conrad also has a mixed record on gay rights. While he personally is opposed to gay marriage, he voted against a proposed constitutional ban on the matter and has supported bills that prevent discrimination based on sexual orientation. On January 31, 2006, Conrad was one of only four Democrats to vote in favor of confirming Judge Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court.

Fiscal policies

Conrad presents himself as knowledgeable about his analysis of monetary policies and budget issues. He considers himself a "deficit hawk" because of his calls for a balanced federal budget,^[6] in spite of his support for farm subsidies. He has voted against Republican proposals to repeal the estate and alternative minimum taxes. He supports lowered middle class taxes, but increasing them for those making over $1 million per year. He supports extending the expiring Bush tax cuts "at least until the economy is clearly recovering" and supports addressing them before the fall elections.^[7]

Conrad was very vocal in his opposition to the spending policies of the George W. Bush administration. He contends that he has worsened the problems of national debt. Conrad is also opposed to most free-trade measures, and is a strong supporter of farming subsidies to family farmers.

Iraq war

Conrad voted against approving use of military force in Iraq in 1991 and was one of only 23 senators to vote against the war resolution of 2002. While he initially voted in favor of the USA PATRIOT Act, he has been an opponent of warrantless wiretapping and of the Guantanamo Bay detention facility.

Countrywide Financial loan scandal

In June 2008, it was reported that Senator Conrad had received mortgages on favorable terms for a second home and an apartment building due to his association with Countrywide CEO Angelo R. Mozilo.^[8] Conrad acknowledged that he spoke with Angelo Mozilo, the Countrywide CEO, by phone.^[9] In an April 23, 2004, email about one of Senator Conrad loans, Mozilo encouraged an employee to “make an exception due to the fact that the borrower is a senator.”^[8] Conrad denied any prior knowledge of such treatment and gave away the mortgage discount to charity.^[10][11] Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) called on the Senate Ethics Committee to investigate Conrad.^[12]

Electoral history

Overview

In the 1986 election, Conrad defeated the Republican incumbent, Mark Andrews, by 2,100 votes. Andrews had represented North Dakota at the federal level since 1963 (he had previously served in the House before moving to the Senate in 1981).

During the campaign, Conrad pledged that he would not run for re-election if the Federal budget deficit had not fallen by the end of his term. By 1992 it became obvious that this would not be the case, and although polls showed that the electors would have welcomed him going back on his pledge, Conrad considered his promise binding and did not run for re-election. Dorgan won the Democratic primary election.

Conrad received a convenient opportunity to remain in the Senate when the other North Dakota senator, long-serving Dem-NPLer Quentin Burdick, died on September 8, 1992. Burdick's widow, Jocelyn Birch Burdick, was appointed to that seat temporarily, but a special election was needed to fill the rest of the term. Viewing this opportunity as different from "running for re-election", Conrad ran for and won the Democratic-NPL's nomination. He went on to win the special election, and was sworn-in December 14, 1992, resigning his original Senate seat the same day. (Conrad's original Senate seat was then filled by Dorgan, via appointment by the governor on December 15, 1992 to fill the seat for the brief interim until he would have been sworn in under normal circumstances.)

Despite North Dakota's Republican leanings, Conrad was handily re-elected in 1994 -— a year when Republicans swept up most of the Congressional seats that were not in heavily Democratic-leaning parts of the U.S.

1986

• Kent Conrad (D) 49.8%
• Mark Andrews (R) (inc.) 49%

1992

1994

• Kent Conrad (D) (inc.) 58%
• Ben Clayburgh (R) 42%

2000

• Kent Conrad (D) (inc.) 61%
• Duane Sand (R) 38%

2006

• Kent Conrad (D) (inc.) 68.8%
• Dwight Grotberg (R) 29.5%
• Roland Riemers (I) 1%
• James Germalic (I) 0.6%

References

External links

• United States Senator Kent Conrad, U.S. Senate site

• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Congressional profile at GovTrack.us
• Issue positions and quotes at On The Issues
• Current Bills Sponsored at StateSurge.com
• Financial information at OpenSecrets.org
• Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Collected news and commentary from The New York Times
• Profile at SourceWatch Congresspedia
• Profile at About.com
• FY2010 Budget Resolution

United States Senators from North Dakota Class 1 Casey • Roach • McCumber • Frazier • Langer • Brunsdale • Q. Burdick • J. Burdick • Conrad Class 3 Pierce • Hansbrough • Johnson • Thompson • Purcell • Gronna • Ladd • Nye • Moses • Young • Andrews • Conrad • Dorgan • Hoeven (elect)